Telltale bottle



a 1936- D. D. HULL 2,040j381 TEYLLTALE BOTTLE Filed Jan. 19, 1935 wightD. Hull INVENTOR F in the completed package and put Patented May 12,1936 PATENT OFFICE TELLTALE BOTJTIJEI Dwight D. Hull, :Seattle, 'Wash.,.assignor -of thirty-five per cent to Robert V. Cornell and -.tenpercent to-James M. Ballard,

vattle, Wash.

both of :Se-

Application January 19, 1935, Serial No. 2,552

- 8 Claims.

My invention relates to containers, for example liquorbottles, and hasfor its principal object the provision of a bottle wherein areincorporated means which will permit the bottle to be opened only by thebreaking of a frangible element conspicuouslylocated, whereby if anattempt is made thereafter to refill the bottle, the purchaser to whomsuch a refilled bottle is offered will know by reason of the fracture ofthe frangible element that the bottle does not contain the originalcontents.

It is a further-object to provide such a device which is simple, readilyprotected against fraud, yet inexpensive and capable of beingincorporated in operative condition with little necessity for thought orcare on the part of the operator filling and closing the bottle, andpreferably by the natural action of closing the bottle.

My invention comprises the novelclosure, cap and tell-tale means, andthe novel combination thereof, as shown in the accompanying drawing,described in the specification, and as will be more particularly pointedout by the claims which terminate the same.

In the accompanying drawing I have shown my invention incorporated in aform which at present is preferred by me, it being obvious that theprinciples of the invention may be incorporated in various ways and invarious types of containers, and provided with various types of closuremeans.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the bottle, typical of any closure,with the tell-tale device in operative position thereon.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the closure cap.

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view substantially on the line 33 ofFigure 1, and Figure 4 is a detail sectional view on the line 4-4 ofFigure l.

The bottle I represents any convenient type of container. Preferably itis made of a substance like glass, although, as will appear hereafter,it may be formed of other material. It is provided with the outlet 2. Inthe form shown the outlet is formed in a screw threaded neck 3. Somewhatdistant from the cap l0, preferably in one of the sides of the bottle,is formed a depression 4, within which is positioned a frangible elementrepresented by the finger 5, which is thus protected against accidentalbreakage.

Preferably this frangible finger 5 is integral with the material ofwhich the container is made, and if the container is of glass the finger5, being small, is readily breakable. If, however, the con- -taineris-made of nonbreakable material, or material which will not readilybreak, the frangible element may be provided with a fracture line, or insome equivalent way made readily separable from the container, yet sucha fracture line may 5 be located beneath'the tab 6, which will bedescribed later, so that it is not readily accessible, and the only wayof disengaging the tab is by breaking off the element 5 from thecontainer,

The tab 6 is preferably of metal. It is slit at 10 least once, two slits"I being shown, whereby it 'may be slippedonto thefinger 5 by upwardmovement, and when thus engaged will lie within the depression '4.Extendingupwardfrom and pref- -erably formed integrally withthe tab 6 isa rib- '15 bon B, andto-prevent tampering with this ribbon, and possiblybreakingiit to permit the bottle to be opened and then substitutinga'newribbon, the ribbon should be snugly received within a groove -9extending {from the-depression '4 upwardly to the neck of the-bottle,and-to a point to which the closure will reach. "The ribbon, by meanswhich will be-described hereafter, is drawn 'taut in the action :of*securing in place the threaded clo'sure cap l'll. 'Therefore if theribbon is tampered=with, this too will be conspicuously evident, as theglassalong the margin of the groove 9 :will probabl-y be chipped.

The ribbon is of such length that when the tab is engaged with thefinger 5 the ribbon ex- 3 tends from the neck of the bottle below thescrew threads. While it may extend in one direction, it is shown asformed in a yoke, the ends I I and I2 of which extend about oppositesides of the neck, the better to insure that it will remain in 5 placeand cannot readily be tampered with. At at least one point it is formedwith a ratchet tooth l2 or equivalent means to engage withcircumferentially disposed axial corrugations I3 formed in the skirt ofthe closure cap I0.

With the tab and ribbon in place as seen in Figure 1, the closure caplll may be threaded upon the neck 3, and as it threads on, thecorrugations l3 engage and pass over the ratchet tooth I2, but thefriction between the two serves to draw the ribbon 8 taut, and to pullit down to the bottom of the groove 9. When the cap has been finallythreaded home the ends II and I2 are substantially entirely beneath theskirt of the cap, where they cannot be reached. Now if an attempt ismade to unscrew the cap, the tooth l2, reacting against the neck,engages the corrugations I3 and prevents such reverse movement of thecap. The ribbon 8 cannot be reached and broken without tell-tale marksbeing left on the bottle, and

the bottle can only be opened by pressing on and breaking the frangiblefinger 5, after which the tab 6 can be lifted to raise the ribbon 8 fromits groove, whereupon there is no resistance to threading ofi movementof the closure cap, the

' ribbon rotating with the cap until finally the cap is removed andtheribbon can be disengaged from the cap, but now the frangible finger 5has been broken olf and cannot be replaced. Accordingly if the consumeris oifered a bottle which has no frangible element, he may well believethat the bottle has once been used, the original contents removed, and asubstitute product replaced in it,

so that the consumer'willre'fuse'a bottle unless the frangible elementis intact.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In combination, a container having an outlet, a closure securableupon said outlet by movement relative thereto in a definite path, afrangible element formed on the container, a'tab'engageable with saidfrangible element, and terminating in a ribbon of a length, with the tabso engaged, to extend about the-outlet, a ratchet member formed on saidribbon, over which the closure moves, as the latter moves towardssecured position, and cooperating ratchet means on the closure,engageable by theratchet member on the ribbon upon reverse movement ofthe closure, to prevent such movement except as the frangible element isbroken. a

2. Incombination, a container having an outlet, a closure securable uponsaid outlet by rota- .tional movement relative thereto in one direction,

a frangible elementv projecting from the container,

- and away from the outlet, a tab engageable with said frangible elementonly by movement towards the outlet, and terminating in a ribbon of alength, with the tab so engaged, to extendabout the outlet, a ratchetmember formed on ribbon, and cooperating ratchet means on the closurepermitting securing movement of the latter, but engageable by theratchet member on the ribbon to prevent reverse rotation; of theclosure, except as the frangible element'is broken. 7

ed neck, a closure threaded thereon, a. frangible finger integral withand projecting from the container and away from the neck, a tabengageable 3. In combination, a container having a thread- -reversemovement.

with said finger only by movement towards the neck, a ribbon integralwith the tab and of a length, with the tab so engaged, to extend aboutthe neck, a ratchet member formed on the latter closure is formed with agroove disposed to receive the ribbon, the latter being stretched tautat the bottom of such groove by the threading-on action.

6. The combination of claim 3, wherein the closure is formed with adepression, and the frangible finger is disposed within such depression,beneath the general level of the rim of the latter, and the closure isfurther formed with a groove extending from said depression to the neck,of a width and so disposed as to snugly receive the ribbon.

7. The combination of claim 3, wherein the ribbon, at the neck end, isformed as a yoke to em- .brace both sides of the closures neck.

8. In combination with a bottle of glass or like material, havingathreaded neck and asurface depression therebelow, a screwcap receivableon said neck and oircumferentially corrugated in an axial direction, anintegral downwardly projecting frangible finger formed in saiddepresvsion, atransversely slit metal tab adapted to en-' gage saidfinger within the slit by upward movement, an integral ribbon extendingupward from said tab to extend about the neck, a ratchet tooth formedonsaid ribbon, and positioned to be en- ,gaged by the corrugationsof thecap, as the lat-.

ter is threaded on the neck, thus to pullthe ribbon taut, and engagingthe cap upon attempted reverse movement of the latter, to prevent. suchDWIGHT D. HULL.

